John Cleese says ‘James Bond’ films have lost sense of humour

John Cleese has suggested that James Bond films have changed tone in order to appease Asian viewers.

Cleese, who appeared in both Die Another Day and The World Is Not Enough, spoke to the Radio Times about his time as part of the much loved franchise and the changes to the series since Daniel Craig started to play Bond.

“I did two James Bond movies, and then I believe that they decided that the tone they needed was that of the Bourne action movies, which are very gritty and humourless,” he said.

Developing his idea, Cleese continued: “Also the big money was coming from Asia, from the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, where the audiences go to watch the action sequences, and that’s why in my opinion the action sequences go on for too long, and it’s a fundamental flaw. The audiences in Asia are not going for the subtle British humour or the class jokes.”

The next Bond film will be the long awaited sequel to Skyfall and will again feature Daniel Craig in the iconic role. Bond producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have set a release date of October 23, 2015 for the next film in the series, with Skyfall co-writer John Logan on board again to pen the screenplay.